Sanofi study demonstrates genetically engineered antibodies can target multiple sites in one molecule.

In a study published in Science, Sanofi and NIH researchers have genetically engineered antibodies with the highest activity and breadth of coverage against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) to date. While natural antibodies recognize a single target on a foreign protein, these antibodies have been engineered to recognize three target sites.

According to Sanofi, their Trispecific HIV antibodies were highly effective at suppressing virus growth and infection. Gary Nabel, Sanofi’s Chief Scientific Officer and lead co-author of the paper, explained "Unlike natural antibodies, trispecific antibodies engage multiple targets in a single product. This approach to multi-targeting provides an opportunity to improve protection against HIV and represents a foundation for potential new treatments of cancer, immune, and infectious diseases."

Sanofi said it can be challenging to deploy broadly neutralizing HIV antibodies because of the “remarkable” genetic diversity of viruses globally. Trispecific antibodies offer a solution because they show better coverage than any other previously studied antibody, noted the company, able to neutralize 99% of more than 200 diverse HIV-1 strains. “One of the trispecific antibodies that recognized the CD4 binding site, the membrane proximal external region (MPER), and the V1V2 glycan site of HIV, fully protected monkeys against infection from a mixture of two simian/human immunodeficiency viruses (SHIV),” the study found.

Building on proprietary technology, the trispecific antibody is now being manufactured for Phase I clinical trials in 2018, in conjunction with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) part of the National Institutes of Health. The study’s published results come from its work, the work of NIAID, Harvard Medical School, The Scripps Research Institute and the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard.

"At Sanofi, we understand that no single company can conquer major public health threats on its own. By joining forces,” concluded Elias Zerhouni, President, Sanofi Global R&D, “the public and private sectors can accelerate our efforts and likelihood of success against infectious diseases and cancer. We are committed to working collaboratively to develop innovative health solutions."